You should check out The Disney Wilderness Preserve

Walt Disney World is a wonder of human invention and innovation, of “Imagineering” in Disney terminology. But what did that piece of real estate Walt Disney turned into his vacation dream land look like before the Imagineers got a hold of it?

Constructing Walt Disney World impacted the environment drastically, and in the early 1990s the Walt Disney Company partnered with the Nature Conservancy to mitigate some of that change by turning a huge swath of undeveloped land at the headwaters of the Everglades into a nature preserve. Today the original 8,500 acres donated by the Walt Disney Company has grown into 12,000 acres of wilderness filled with wildlife. The Nature Conservancy’s Disney Wilderness Preserve is just a 28-mile drive south of the resort entrance and provides an interesting side trip for environmentally-inclined visitors.

The site of the preserve was once heavily logged and used as ranch land, but it has been restored to near pristine condition as described by the first Spanish missionaries to visit what is now Florida. Many species of birds have returned to the area, including bald eagles and sandhill cranes. Walt Disney’s Animal Kingdom has partnered with the Nature Conservancy to monitor one of the nation’s largest rookeries of wood storks as hundreds of mated pairs arrive each spring to nest among the bald cypress. The preserve also is home to big-eared bats, gopher tortoises and indigo snakes. The occasional Florida panther has even been seen passing through!

A hiking trail leaves the visitor center parking lot and offers a view of Lake Russell, with one of Florida’s last undeveloped lake fronts, along with an optional 2.5-mile loop showcasing more of the area’s unique plant and animal species.

For a little break from theme parks, or just to see some of what nature has to offer, visit the Disney Nature Conservancy at 2700 Scrub Jay Trail in Kissimmee. Hours are Monday – Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., except major holidays. You can learn more by calling the Nature Conservancy visitor center at (407) 935-0002 or visiting the web site here.

Jeffrey is a father, husband, Disney fan and refugee from the real world. While planning his next Disney trip, he enjoys bringing the Magic into his life in all ways possible, including his personal blog, Pooh Sticks.

Related articles

• Disney Takes Animal Kingdom to Facebook With Disney Animal Kingdom Explorers (chipandco.com)
• Walt Disney World Donates $5.7 Million Donation to Florida United Way (chipandco.com)

Let our friends at Destinations to Travel help you book your next Disney Vacation. They are the preferred Travel Agency of Chip and Company and Disney Addicts, and who we use ourselves.

Get started below for your FREE No Obligation Quote.

Book With our friends at Destinations to Travel

Who is your Travel Agent?(Required)

Let us pick for youEric HilesStacy ReedAbbey JohnsonAlisa SullivanAlli WillisAmanda FolsomAmanda VannAmber BrillhartAmber FisherAmy SieburnAndrea SmithAngela AndersonAngie BaycuraAnna PetrilliAnnabelle DuboseApril StefanskiAshley RamseyBeth ParsonsBetsy SantoroBrandie McQueenBrian BuckleyBridget HatchBryan SchwartzCandice SneedCarrie ButlerCarson DockumCasey BoltCharleen HortonChelsea RoyChelsea WuebkerChris BoyerChristie GrubeChristina FratturaChristina SmithCourtney WhiteCraig YoderDan MercedDanielle NorcrossDarby MouritsenDavid ForrestDeborah AlvaradoEmilee BiegelEmily MorrisFaith HakesGail HatchGreg MatzkerHelen HummerHolly CurryJackie CavistonJaclyn PepitoneJamie SwansonJeanine JordanJeff CallahanJenni MaierJennifer BrownJennifer StephensonJennifer StoessnerJessica HatfieldJessica HuffJessica WunderJoe GuertinJon CarpentierJoseph SliwaJulie McCombJustin BrownKat AttridgeKathryn EberhartKathy AndersonKatie HarrellKatie PrevotKayla CookKelsey SullensKim HelmsKimberly HutchinsonKristi GallagherKyle RamsdenLauren DewlenLeanne MonterLinda DurhamLindsay AckermannLindsey VromanLissette BritoLori HardyMallory MorrisonMandi QuinnMaranda PerkinsMarisa AlvaradoMegan TeismannMeghan BlairMelissa ReedMichele KlineMike BeyerMissy McCormickMisty DickersonNancy CasteelNicole ThorntonPatrick O'ConnorPaul SulPeyton Ward-KubikRaylene CooganRegan OstranderRobbie BulusRobert ThomasSara SolbergSarah McCandlishShanna BrowningShelley BennettShelly MetzStacy CristStacy KrzyminskiStacy SmithStephanie DraganoStephanie FerencStephanie WalshSusannah McCordTara SlusserTerri MillerTiffany DobraskiTiffany DrenkhahnTina FarmerTonya LesiukTracy DaneTroy DuncanVeronica RenteriaVicki FesslerWendy CarllWendy HauserWendy KellehanWendy Shelley

Name(Required)

First Last

Email(Required)

Phone(Required)

Destination(Required)

Walt Disney WorldDisneyland ResortDisney Cruise LineAulani, A Disney Resort and SpaAulani, A Disney Resort and SpaUniversal FloridaUniversal HollywoodRoyal Caribbean, Carnival, Norwegian or other Cruise LineI don't know yet

# of Adults(Required)

# of Children(Required)

Check-in-Date(Required)

MM slash DD slash YYYY

Check-out-Date(Required)

MM slash DD slash YYYY

Comments, Questions or Special Requests

Phone

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Δ

For the BEST in Disney, Universal, Dollywood, and SeaWorld Theme Park News, Entertainment, Merchandise & More follow us on, Facebook, Instagram, and Youtube. Don't forget to check out the Chip and Company Radio Network too!